We drove the half hour or so to Sedona and took a one hour trolley tour around the area. Red Rocks National Park is SO beautiful - reminded me a lot of Garden of the Gods in Manitou Springs, Colorado. Of all the days to do so, I forgot my camera! I took some pics with my cell phone, but they're not much to look at, so I may go back to the few pictures I took last year when my Cousins Michael and Jeannie lived here and took us for a drive around the area. The sculptured red rocks are magnificent shapes - a result of 350 million years of tireless erosion. Sedona was covered many times by shallow inland seas, and as they encroached and receded again and again they deposited the layers of iron-rich sand that now make up Sedona's famous Red Rocks. The Mogollon Rim (pronounced muggy-on) that surrounds Sedona is an awesome geologic uplift towering almost 3000 feet above Sedona's 4500 foot elevation. This uplift is what gives the area such dramatic rock formations- canyons, buttes and spires carved into the northern plateau over eons of time. The Mogollon Rim is home to the largest ponderous pine forest in the world. These pines share a varied landscape with piņon, juniper and mesquite trees as well as manzanita, prickly pear cactus and agave plants. The unique shapes of the rocks inspire their names: Coffeepot Rock, Cathedral Rock, Snoopy Rock.

Besides attracting many artists with its beauty, Sedona is known for its unique metaphysical features. Nowhere else in the world is there such a concentration of vortex areas (4). To ancient Indian tribes, the red rock valley of Sedona was a sacred land, only used for special rites and ceremonies. Long ago, they established the locations of focused power, the vortices. A vortex is a giant magnet of energy - positively and negatively charged - where the energetic lay lines of the earth's field converge. These ancient powers are still visited today. These concentrations of the earth's power have inspired many a visitor's super spiritual Sedona experience, some for their energizing qualities, and some for their calming influences. They include Boynton Canyon, Bell Rock, Cathedral Rock, and Airport Mesa.